


Shallureith Week 2017

by eutrash (AreteNike)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Chocolate, First Meeting, Human Allura, Merman Shiro, Multi, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Pets, Stargazing, beach, mythical creatures AU, naga keith, shallureith week, uhh its gonna be disconnected drabbles but all in the same au probs, uhh one of these deals w shiros missing arm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-06
Updated: 2017-03-10
Packaged: 2018-09-30 00:48:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10149230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AreteNike/pseuds/eutrash
Summary: Fills for Shallureith week, I might not get to all of them though...Day 1: ChocolateDay 2: WavesDay 3: PetsDay 4: LossDay 5: SoundDay 6: StarsDay 7: Free day (not part of the au, so I put ithereinstead!)





	1. Day 1: Chocolate

Keith can hear Allura coming from half a mile away, but Shiro is napping in the coils of his tail, so he waits until the very last minute before moving and waking him up. Shiro is only just stirring, therefore, as Allura appears over the last ridge and spots them through the trees.

"Boys!" she shouts cheerfully, half-jogging down the hill. "I brought you something!"

She brings them something more often than not, but Keith doesn't mention that. Instead he stretches forward, tightening his coils slightly around a grumbling Shiro, and tries to peer inside her bag as she approaches. She pulls it away from him though.

"Ah-ah, not yet. Where's Shiro?"

"Here," Shiro calls sleepily, waving a hand above Keith's tail. He's still lounging within but at least he's definitely awake.

"Let him out, Keith," Allura says, so Keith obligingly starts to uncoil. Shiro yelps as his backrest suddenly slithers out from beneath him, and both laugh; by the time Keith has mostly unraveled himself, Shiro is standing on his own two feet looking seriously disgruntled. His hair is sticking up at an odd angle, though, entirely ruining the expression.

"Did you have to do that?" he asks.

"Allura told me to," Keith says innocently.

"Come over, Shiro," Allura says without a hint of remorse. "This is worth waking up for." 

She sits down on Keith's tail, stretches out her legs, and sets her bag in her lap; Shiro sighs and limps over to join her. He can never stay mad for long. Keith curls around closer to see while Shiro sits too--a couple feet down his tail so that their combined pressure isn't too uncomfortable--and Allura finally opens the bag. She frees a small, flat box from it and holds it up.

"...What's that?" Shiro asks after a moment.

"Chocolate!" says Allura.

Keith leans in and sniffs the box. He's drunk cacao before--this smells similar, but a lot sweeter, and he says as much.

"Oh, yes, we do sweeten it quite a bit," she says. "This is 80% though, so it's about as dark as you can get it without being entirely unsweetened."

"Why would you sweeten it at all?"

"Because it's bitter if you don't?"

"It's supposed to be," Keith says stubbornly.

Allura raises an eyebrow, barely noticing as Shiro gently takes the box out of her hands and begins opening it. "Surely you don't enjoy bitterness?"

"No, but you're not supposed to _enjoy_ it. It's cacao."

"Oh?" Allura leans forward, now interested. "Why do you drink it, then?"

Keith wonders if unfettered curiosity is a human thing, or just an Allura thing. Either way, she won't be satisfied with half an answer. He shrugs.

"It used to be part of a ritual," he says. "We'd drink it for strength in battle. But that was centuries ago, so now people drink it for good luck before an important event." He pauses. "Or just to stay awake."

Allura chuckles. It's a musical sound and Keith leans in despite himself. "We have coffee for that," she says.

"What's coffee?"

"I guess I'll bring some next time."

"This is good," Shiro interrupts, and Keith and Allura both turn to look. Shiro has opened the box and torn away some sort of foil inside, and broken off a piece of the hard, dark brown rectangle within. He's chewing thoughtfully. "I like the texture," he adds, "but I wish it was a little sweeter."

"Try this, then," Allura says, offering him another box from her bag and taking the other back. This one has no percentage written on it, just the words "milk chocolate." She offers the 80% to Keith while Shiro opens the other; Keith breaks off a piece and chews it thoughtfully.

He has to agree with Shiro about the texture--it's very smooth, even though it's solid, and melts in his mouth; the hint of sweetness is different from what he's used to but it's not really unwelcome, either.

"It's pretty good," he concedes. "But I wouldn't want anything sweeter."

"More for me," Shiro mumbles around a mouthful of chocolate, and they laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on tumblr [here](http://maternalcube.tumblr.com/post/158083474544/shows-up-two-days-late-to-shallureith-week-w)


	2. Day 2: Waves

Shiro regards the beach with no small degree of anxiety. Sure, he agreed to come here--it was his idea, even--but just looking at the waves makes him feel sick.

Which is pathetic for a merman and he hates it, and that's why he's here, to fix it, but knowing that doesn't make him any less uncomfortable.

A warm hand slips into his own, his real one, and he looks over at Allura. She smiles up at him.

"How are you feeling?" she asks.

"Not great," he admits. Her expression shifts into concern.

"Are you... having flashbacks?" she asks tentatively.

"Not yet," he says darkly. "Where's Keith?"

It's an excuse to change the subject, but she lets him have it. "Still on his way, probably. He can't exactly walk down the street."

"How _is_ he getting here?"

"He said he'd come down the creek." She points down the beach, so he starts walking that way.

It's not long past dawn, but already warm, as it should be in late July; the beach is private, tucked in a miniature cove behind the veritable mansion Allura's family rents every summer. Shiro is pretty sure the only reason other people don't use it anyway, though, is because the beach is pretty rocky and the creek absolutely _reeks_.

Keith seems to agree, from the expression on his face when he finally shows up in the creekbed from behind the rocks and brush off the side of the property.

"I hate this creek," he complains. "It's like swimming in piss."

"You like warmth," Shiro points out with half a smile, while Allura splutters.

"I like _sunlight_ , not this... unnaturally warm... stinky water."

"Poetic."

"Thanks. You ready?"

Shiro sucks in a breath and glances over his shoulder at the ocean. "Not really?"

"You could have a turn in Piss Pond back there, instead." Keith flicks the tip of his tail back in the direction he came, while Allura puts her hands on her hips.

" _Must_ you be so vulgar?" she asks.

"What do you want me to call it? _Urine_ Pond? It's the same thing."

"It does smell pretty bad," Shiro says diplomatically. "And no, I really don't want to swim there."

"It's contained, though. Not open like the ocean." Keith gestures down the beach.

Shiro stiffens. 

"Keith!" Allura chides.

"We're here to help him get over it!"

"You shouldn't say it so bluntly!"

"I'm fine," Shiro says stiffly. He's not. The thought of the depths--what they might contain--used to excite him, but now it terrifies him. All the dark places he'd have to cross to get home...

Rough hands take his own. "Shiro," Keith says, getting right up in his face. "Hey. Shiro."

Shiro swallows. "Keith."

"Okay." Keith backs off, but not by much. "Just stand in the shallows, at least. Right?"

"That's what I did last time," Shiro mumbles.

"Then maybe you can do more today," Allura says gently. "But we need to start somewhere."

He nods, not trusting his voice. Keith takes one hand--the prosthetic one--and Allura the other, and they lead him down to where the gentle waves lap against the shore. He shivers when the water splashes over his toes; his fear is pulling him back, but his heart is dragging him forward, out into the sea, where he belongs. He's been away so long, and the wrongness of it is a hole in his chest.

But he can't bring himself to take more than a few steps forward anyway, stopping when the waves swell against his knees. He shouldn't even _have_ knees, dammit. This isn't his true form. He wants so desperately to shift back.

He shuffles another inch forward. Allura and Keith shuffle with him. Keith's tail sweeps out into the ocean in front of them like a barrier, just deep enough to be completely submerged.

_Don't think about what's beyond it,_ Shiro tells himself, and moves out a little farther.

He doesn't ultimately get much deeper than that, but Allura does manage to coax him into sitting down in the shallows. He half sits, half floats there, watching Allura and Keith splash around in the deeper water. Keith can't go too deep, lest someone out for a morning swim see him from around the jetty, and Allura takes full advantage, laughing and treading water out of his reach until he ducks underwater and sweeps her back in with his tail.

While they're distracted, he tries shifting, just for a moment, and the familiar deep blue-black of his tail flicks through the water beneath him. But it's spotted with white scales, like the hair on his head, so he shifts back before he can think too much about how it got that way.

His legs are unbearably ugly after the sight of his tail as he watches them float beneath the surface, pushed and pulled by the waves. He sighs.

Someday, hopefully soon, he'll be able to swim again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on tumblr [here](http://maternalcube.tumblr.com/post/158084643174/and-shallureith-week-day-2-waves-again-feat)


	3. Day 3: Pets

"Hello," says Shiro. "You are _very small_. Yes, you are!"

The little dog yips in response, and Allura chuckles. Keith, meanwhile, is keeping his distance.

"What the hell _is_ that?" he asks.

"It's a dog, Keith. Even I know that."

Keith bristles. "Not all of us have _legs_ , Shiro. I can't exactly waltz into the nearest neighborhood and meet the humans' pets."

"Easy, Keith," Allura says quickly. "I'm sure Shiro didn't mean it like that."

"I didn't," Shiro says. She's pleased to see he looks a little guilty, even though he's now fully sitting on the forest floor with her uncle's dog in his lap, and that Keith looks a little guilty too. Conflict avoided.

"I know what a _dog_ is," the latter says sullenly. "It's just so small and... squeaky. It's not like any dog I've ever seen."

Allura laughs. "His name _is_ Squeaky. It wasn't supposed to be, but it stuck. I can't blame you for your confusion, though, he's not the sort of dog you'd let loose in the woods."

Keith makes a face, considering, as Shiro continues to murmur baby talk at the chihuahua in his lap. Squeaky, for his part, is happily soaking it all up.

"So, he's yours?" Keith finally asks. 

"No, my uncle's. I'm just babysitting for the weekend."

"He's mine now," Shiro mumbles, lifting the little dog to his face to kiss. He's straight-faced but there's a glimmer in his eyes, and Allura has to laugh.

"Did you keep pets underwater?" Keith asks, slithering just a little bit closer.

"We kept various cephalopods, I guess."

"I don't know what that is."

"Octopi. Squids. That sort of thing."

"Any giant squids?" Allura asks, unable to resist a little teasing. Shiro just raises an eyebrow, though.

"No," he says. "They're too big."

Keith snorts. He gets low to the ground and slides in closer, looking intently at Squeaky. Squeaky looks intently back, and starts growling when he gets too close. Keith freezes.

"He doesn't seem to like you," Shiro notes.

"That's odd. Squeaky likes most people," Allura says. "I wonder why?"

Keith straightens up and gestures flatly at his own tail.

"That... may be it, yeah," she concedes. Shiro heaves a sigh.

"I guess you can't stay after all," he says to the dog. "Even if you _are_ very cute."

The dog yips at him, wagging his tail.

"Well, Keith is my boyfriend, see," Shiro explains seriously. "I'm kind of obligated to choose him over you."

"Thanks?" says Keith.

The dog yips again.

"Nope, it's non-negotiable. You don't like him, you can't stay."

The dog whines. Allura, who has been smothering her giggles behind a hand, finally bursts out laughing. Shiro's face twitches despite his efforts to keep a straight face, and Keith grins. Squeaky just barks at them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on tumblr [here](http://maternalcube.tumblr.com/post/158123753514/shallureith-day-3-pets-will-i-catch-up-who)


	4. Day 4: Loss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is before they meet keith! coran is human.

"I know you don't trust me," Allura had said. "But I promise you that I can help you."

And she was right--Shiro _doesn't_ trust her. She's human, and mer and other myths put a great deal of effort into hiding from humans. But Shiro had been taught from a young age that humans are emotional creatures, prone to attachment--if your tail is ever seen by a human, he'd been told, befriend them. Make them think they're on your side, and they'll keep you secret.

It's for that reason that Shiro had agreed to follow Allura into her car, and that reason alone. He doesn't regret it, exactly, because it's hard to imagine anything she could do would be worse than what he's just recently escaped, but he's more than a little anxious. Especially when she pulls up to a building with "Laboratory" written across the front.

"What... is this place?" he asks, voice sounding strangled even to his own ears.

"My uncle makes specialty prosthetics," she says as she turns off the car. "I thought he might be able to design something waterproof for you."

That was not at all what Shiro had expected to hear. He blinks, and says nothing, as she sits back and watches him.

"You don't have to talk to him, if you don't want to. We can leave now," she says gently. She hasn't even unbuckled yet. "You don't have to tell him anything you don't want to. Though... I think he might figure it out, anyway. He _is_ unusually perceptive." She purses her lips and looks out the windshield at the building's front. "But I promise he is harmless."

Shiro frowns, and rubs the stump of his right arm. It still aches, and the scar tissue is tender and new. He _can_ swim without it--he did it to escape, though it was hard, harder than he thought it would be. But he can't fight without it. He can't hunt, or do much of anything useful for his family that probably thinks he's--

He takes a deep, shuddering breath. Don't think about that.

Allura wouldn't reveal who he is to anyone if she's going through the trouble to get him a new arm, right?

"I'll talk to him," he says finally, shakily. 

"You're sure?"

No. "Yes."

"Alright," she says, and they finally get out of the car. She leads the way into the building, up a staircase, down a hall to a particular office, and she knocks.

"Who's there?" a voice calls from within.

"It’s Allura," she calls back.

"Allura!" There are footsteps, and then the door flies open to reveal a man with shockingly orange hair and an impressive mustache to match. He takes Allura by the shoulders and draws her in for a brief hug. "Why, I didn't know you'd be dropping by today! To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Uncle Coran, this is my friend, Shiro," Allura says, gesturing. "He needs an arm."

Friend. That's a good sign. "Uh... Hello," Shiro says. He squirms under the man's piercing gaze; it flicks down to his arm, then to his legs, then back up to his face.

"You're a long way from home, aren't you?" Coran muses. "Come in, come in. I'll see what I can do."

"...How did you know?" Shiro asks after a moment. He shuffles in obligingly, if uncomfortably; Coran doesn't respond until he's closed the door behind them.

"Side effect of chasing fairies, back in my youth," he says easily, as though this doesn't change the situation entirely. "Once you spend time in the Land of the Fay, you're never quite the same, you know!"

Allura gasps. "Uncle! You never told me about that!"

Shiro gasps, too, a much smaller, shocked sound. "You escaped?"

"Won my freedom, actually! I'd rather stay on the Fair Folk's _fair_ side, if you catch my drift. Hence why I never told you, Allura." Coran sits cheerfully on his own desk and picks up a notepad. "I figure if you've brought me a merman, the secret's out, hm?" He pauses. "You _did_ know that already, yes?"

"Yes, yes, I did--I just..." Allura gestures aimlessly. Coran nods knowingly.

"It takes some getting used to, I know," he says. "Now then. Let's see about your arm, shall we?" He turns to Shiro and gestures for him to approach. "May I?"

Shiro decides that this is not a man to be trifled with, not if he's escaped the Fay--but, also, a man who can keep a secret. He shuffles closer so Coran can examine his stump.

Coran hums over it, gently feeling the scar tissue. "Not the work of a shark or squid, I take it?" he says.

"N-no..."

Coran fortunately doesn't ask more than that, just hums again. Shiro has a feeling he knows, anyway.

He and Allura wait patiently as Coran takes notes and examines his arm. Finally, he sets the pad down.

"Well!" he says. "Your injury is still a little swollen, so I can't take any measurements yet, but I can certainly start designing something for you in the meantime! We've been working on a lightweight prototype lately that uses your own nerve signals to move naturally--it would involve implanting sensors beneath your skin, but there wouldn't be any exposed wiring, so it'd be completely waterproof. We've been experimenting with 3D printing to lower costs and speed up production, but there'll still be some work to do to ensure it's light enough..." His voice trails off and he scribbles something down on his notepad. Shiro rubs his stump. He doesn't like the idea of anything implanted beneath his skin, but if it gets him a functional arm...

"What _will_ it cost?" Allura asks after a moment, and Shiro grimaces.

"I... have no money..."

"Oh, don't worry about it. After all, you'll be doing us a favor by testing our prototype!" Coran winks. "Now then, off with you! Let that swelling go down, and come back in a week. I'll see if I can't have something for you to try by then."

"Thanks, Uncle Coran," Allura says, and gives him a hug. Shiro keeps rubbing his arm uncomfortably.

"Thanks," he echoes. It'll be another week of sleeping in the bushes, then. Maybe once he has two arms again, though, swimming will be easier, and he'll be comfortable going back in the water. Then he can go home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on tumblr [here](http://maternalcube.tumblr.com/post/158206371644/oh-god-what-day-is-it-i-dont-even-know-how-far)


	5. Day 5: Sound

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place within a month or so of last chapter

Keith's territory may be kind of small and empty... and uncomfortably close to a human settlement, and the water smells... but it's _his_ , so he guards it fiercely anyway. Not that any other nagas want it, or that any myths at all come through, except for the occasional fairy or bird-shifter.

So, when two sets of footsteps echo through the ground beneath him, he figures it's just a couple of humans, and goes to spy.

From a distance, they do look human. They're trekking up the little stream that runs through his woods, one on its bank and one actually in the water. He gets a little closer, staying low and downwind, just in case.

And then he overhears what they're saying.

"There must be another pond," says the shorter, darker one. Female, he thinks.

"And what are the chances that one stinks, too?" says the taller, male one. "The smell has to come from somewhere. Some human runoff or something."

Do humans usually talk about their species like they aren't one? Keith doesn't think so, but what does he know, he lives in the woods.

"I could get you an inflatable pool to sleep in," says the woman.

"How big are they?"

"Six feet? They might go up to ten. I have no idea, honestly."

"I wouldn't even fit in that."

"They aren't very deep, either, but wouldn't it be better than the ground?"

The man stops. Keith is close enough now that he can see the guy is barefoot, and most of his right arm is unnatural; it looks like it's made of some sort of human material. He wonders if that has to do with why he apparently wants to sleep in water instead of... on the ground? Keith sleeps on the ground, but he's a myth; humans sleep in buildings, right?

And the breeze brushes against his face, bringing with it the scent of the ocean though the wind is offshore today. There's the smell of human too, but just one, and much fainter.

And then Keith connects the dots. The smell of the ocean, the desire to sleep in water, the way he talked about humans--he's _isn't_ human. The woman is, but the man is _mer_ , and probably nobility or even royalty, if he's got legs he can shift into.

Can't hurt to get on his good side, then. Keith knows perfectly well there's a lot of human junk upstream before there's any more ponds, and it stinks the whole way up. He can save the guy a lot of trouble if he just tells him so.

He also wants to know what the hell a mer is doing trying to find some place on land to sleep, when the ocean is _right there_. So he straightens up from his hiding place and slithers closer.

"Hey!" he calls. Both spin; the woman yelps and jumps backward into the stream, ducking behind the mer, who merely watches Keith approach.

"Hello," the mer says politely when Keith is close enough. "I assume we've stumbled into your territory? I'm sorry about that, I'm not too familiar with the area."

Keith grunts and leans back on his tail, crossing his arms. "It's fine. Not everyday a mer walks through." He emphasizes "walks" to see the man's reaction, but he just shrugs and smiles.

"It's a long story. I'm Shiro." He inclines his head. "And this is Allura." He gestures back to the woman still standing behind him, albeit less fearfully now. She nods, too, eyeing his tail.

"Keith," he says, and nods back. "And you're not gonna find anything but humans upstream. Just so you know."

Allura's eyes widen, but Shiro smiles. He probably knows nagas have exceptional hearing, just like Keith knows some mer can shift.

"Thank you," he says. "I thought that might be the case. Are there many myths around here?"

Keith shrugs. "Bird-shifters and fairies, sometimes. Mostly just me. There's a few other nagas out by the highway, and a horse-shifter at a stable down the other side of the peninsula, but I think she's feral."

"Doesn't it get cold around here, for you?" Shiro seems genuinely curious, and a little concerned. Weird. Keith shrugs again.

"We hibernate?" He jabs the tip of his tail towards Allura, who starts. " _I'd_ like to know why you've let this human know about you."

Shiro glances back, and puts his fake hand on her shoulder. "She's helped me out a lot," he says. "She can be trusted."

Well, Keith wouldn't trust her, but he'll trust a fellow myth. A myth that isn't of the Fay, anyway.

"I won't tell anyone about you," Allura says firmly. "I promise."

"Okay." Keith uncrosses his arms and leans down and in to get a better look at the two. They're both kinda pretty, even if they have legs; Shiro's scars don't really detract from his looks, either. But whatever. "You're allowed in my territory, I guess. Just don't bring any other humans."

"Of course!" she says eagerly.

"I won't, either," says Shiro.

"Not that you know very many of us," Allura says, with a little smile.

"No, that's true." Shiro chuckles. "Anyway, thanks, Keith. I appreciate your help."

"Sure." Keith straightens up again. "See you around, I guess."

"It was nice to meet you!" Allura says, and she starts back down the stream.

"See you," Shiro says with a nod, and follows. Keith watches them go, and stretches out in the sunny patch by the water once they're out of view. Well, there goes his excitement for the month. He's not gonna see either of them again.

Probably.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on tumblr [here](http://maternalcube.tumblr.com/post/158206976979/shallureith-day-5-sound-vaguely-it-starts-w)


	6. Day 6: Stars

"See those four stars there, that make a sort of trapezoid?" Allura points uselessly, knowing neither man will be able to follow the gesture anyway. "And then there's a few sort of curving off from that?"

"No," says Keith, which isn't surprising.

"Yeah," says Shiro. "The Lure. Like an anglerfish."

"Oh." Allura chuckles. "We call it the Big Dipper."

"Why?"

"Because it looks like a ladle, I suppose."

"I can't see anything," Keith complains. "Just black."

"And I brought something for you to help with that, just in case." Allura sits up and reaches over Keith's tail for her bag--she and Shiro both are reclining in Keith's coils, and so is he, right between them--and rummages through it. She pulls out a pair of binoculars and hands them over.

"What is this?" Keith turns them over, probably feeling them more than seeing them. His eyesight is... poor, not that there's much light to see by anyway.

"Binoculars," Allura says, turning them in his hands so he's holding them correctly. "You look through them so you can see things far away better."

"Hm." Keith lifts the binoculars to his eyes. He looks around for a moment with them.

"Well?" says Shiro.

"It's just a bunch of white specks," Keith says, sounding rather put-out. Allura and Shiro laugh.

"They're pretty when there's a whole sky full of them," Shiro says. "Far away from humans, so there isn't any... what's the phrase?"

"Light pollution?" says Allura.

"Yes. That."

"So, the middle of the ocean?" Keith is still looking through the binoculars, despite his complaints.

"...Yeah."

"I'll take your word for it, then."

"Maybe someday we can load you onto a boat and head out somewhere," Allura says, nudging him. "We just need to get our hands on something big enough."

Keith grimaces, still looking through the binoculars. "I'm not that good a swimmer, y'know."

"You can wear a lifejacket."

"Don't ships usually have those floating rings? If we get, say, twenty..."

"Yes! And line them all up along his tail."

"That'd probably be enough to keep him afloat."

Keith groans and finally lowers the binoculars. "You two need to stop."

Allura chuckles. "Sorry," she says, though she isn't, really. Keith's pout is adorable.

"Can I see?" Shiro asks, tugging on the binoculars. Keith lets him have them and stretches with a grumble, shifting his tail beneath them all; Shiro waits until he's settled down again before looking through the binoculars himself.

"You're right," he says after a moment. "There's not much to look at like this."

"Told you."

"There might be some planets out. I think Jupiter's around somewhere, or Venus," Allura says. "There's the moon, too."

"Mm." Shiro tilts his head, finding the moon quickly. "It doesn't make it that much bigger, though."

"Next time I'll bring a telescope, then."

"Will that be more interesting?" Keith yawns.

"You don't have to come," Allura says with a grin.

"No, I'll come," he says quickly, and beneath the binoculars Shiro smiles, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on tumblr [here](http://maternalcube.tumblr.com/post/158244836549/shallureith-week-day-6-stars-probably-anyone)


End file.
